


Sin's Eternal Wages

by getdxwnyadirtyrascal



Category: Original Work
Genre: 1800s, Alcohol, Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Catholic Guilt, Character Death, Multi, Past Abuse, Past Child Abuse, Past Rape/Non-con, Past Sexual Abuse, Rape, Religion, Religious Guilt, Sexual Abuse, Sexual Content, Sexual Harassment, Sexual Violence, Smoking, Underage Rape/Non-con, Violence, historical fiction - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-19
Updated: 2020-11-18
Packaged: 2021-03-09 23:14:04
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,096
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27623894
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/getdxwnyadirtyrascal/pseuds/getdxwnyadirtyrascal
Summary: Strange, how one thing can lead to either a lifetime of misery or happiness. Strange, how the choices made by one person can affect the lives of others. Strange, how the weight of one person's sins, can affect so many.. and it's strange, how these stories can come from the most unlikely places and times.
Relationships: Original Character(s)/Original Character(s), Original Female Character/Original Female Character, Original Female Character/Original Male Character, Original Male Character/Original Male Character
Kudos: 1





	1. Prologue

I would say I'm gonna make this real quick, but that would be a lie. There is way too much shit to unpack to make this a quick to explain story.

My name isn't important. All anyone needs to know is that I was born unexpectedly, unwanted, and unloved, another poor soul who slipped through the cracks of life.

This isn't my life story though, hell, I don't even have a life story, I'm just 18.

This story is about my fucked up "family" history. All of this information comes from diaries, personal experience, and everything that my senile grandma told me on her deathbed. 

Let's get started, yeah?

Timothy Rogers the Second. A wealthy man, the devil himself fears him. He came to America with his parents at three years old. I only met the man a few times when I was small, never knew why I wasn't allowed to be around him. He died two weeks ago, old age.

Izabella Gia Camelio-Rogers. An angel broken by love. She married Timothy when she was 19, then spent the rest of her life living in hell. She died of a broken heart long before I was even thought of, but I know she was strong. She had to be, I know it.

Antonio Leonardo Rogers, or just Tony. The forgotten, unwanted younger brother. He was a lot like me, it just took him a lot longer to get away from his abuse. I met him at the reading of Grandpa Tim's will. Something.. Something wasn't right about him. I guess he was too broken to be repaired.

Bella Abigail Rogers. Grandpa Tim's child bride, she married him right after Grandma Iz died. I can't help but pity her, having her youth stolen by a wealthy old bastard who tricked her into believing he loved her. Stories like hers, they make me hope I never love anyone.

Ethel Rebekah Grayson. The she-devil who helped "raise" me. How she can call herself a woman of God is beyond me. She should've died before she could take me in. I would've been better off on the streets.

Charles Marcus Grayson. Another fool manipulated by love. I never met him, he died not long before I was born. Granny Ethel said he wanted to be a doctor, until she came along. Too bad he couldn't have been something great.

Andrew Noah Grayson. The uncle I never knew. He's Granny Ethel and Papa Charles oldest kid. He was born to be different. I never got the chance to meet him, though I hope to one day.

Kelly Clarisse Rogers. My biological mother. A real goddamn bitch. Granny Ethel and Papa Charles are her parents, and I honestly can't decide who was worse, her or Granny Ethel. She helped make my life awful and caused part of my problems. I hate her.

Timothy Rogers the Third. The devil himself, and my biological father. It shouldn't be possible to hate one person this much, but when said person breaks you and leaves you scarred for life, it's hard not to hate them. 

Jacob Anthony Dawson, my godfather. Some say he's a bastard, but he always tried to protect me, even when he was protecting me from my father, his childhood best friend. He wasn't a bad person, he was drawn that way.

Jade. That's all anyone knows her by, it's all I knew her by. I want to call her a bitch, everyone perceives her as such, but she's one person no one knows the full story of. Not even my mother, her best friend, or my father, her lover.

Cyrus, or Cryptid, to some. A man wrapped in mystery and tragedy. He was always an unrecognizable shadow in my life. I could never tell if he was a good presence or a bad presence, and I still have no idea which one he was.

All of their stories are connected. They are intertwined by love, loss, greed, tragedy, pain, suffering, and betrayal.

If you want to continue reading, go ahead, and I'll do my best to put this broken tale into words.


	2. Izabella

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Content Warnings:  
> Past Abuse  
> Past Child Abuse  
> Miscarriage  
> Mentioned Alcoholism  
> Mentioned/Implied Marital Rape/Noncon  
> Mentioned Underage Rape/Noncon  
> Pedophilia

[Found in the diary of Izabella Camelio-Rogers. This is the last entry recorded.]

~~~

April 26th, 1888

My name is Izabella Gia Camelio-Rogers. I came to this country at eight years old, leaving my parents in Sicily, Italy. I had no one, until I met a boy. 

The boy was named Cyrus, though he told me to call him Cryptid. It fit him, he was quiet, a mystery. He told me to follow him to an apartment building when we met. I followed, not knowing what else to do, having nowhere else to go. He introduced me to a gang, a gang he was a part of. At only eight, this small, quiet boy was in a gang where murder was the normal and thievery was the key to survival. Boss, I never learned the true name of the gang's leader, took me in. I was accepted by the gang, as if I was already part of this strange family. Soon, they became my family. 

I learned valuable medical skills, and how to use a gun. I hated guns, I always did. But Cyrus said one day I may need to know how to use one, in case he could not protect me. He was always looking out for me, and I looked out for him. He was my best friend, my brother. We were inseparable. I grew to love this gang as my family, they were my family, and I lived with them for years until I found work as a seamstress.

I was nineteen when I met Timothy Rogers. I was walking the streets of New York, when I ran into him. He was the most handsome man I had ever seen. He had long, dark, and curly hair. His eyes were a deep brown, almost black. His skin was a dark olive tone, and his complexion was perfect. He was also from Italy, came to New York with his parents at three, and his father became a wealthy businessman. Now, he had his own business, in alcohol. I never cared much for alcohol but many did, such as the gang. I suppose it was a good business to be in, at the very least.

Timothy walked me home that day, he had asked to see me again. No man had ever given me the time of day, and here was a man, far above me, asking to see me again. I happily accepted. And we saw each other more often, and in less than two months, we were engaged. I was so happy, I felt like I was so in love with him. How foolish I was to think that I was in love with a man I barely knew.

Our wedding night was.. adequate. That is the only way I know to describe it. I had never been with a man before, and I wasn't exactly ready to be with one. But I was a married woman now, it was my job to make my husband happy, and I loved him too much to disappoint him. The honeymoon was lovely, we went to the mountains and had a wonderful time. But this happiness was temporary.

The first time he hit me, a month after we were married, I blamed myself for bothering him when he had already had a bad day. After all, he had apologized later, he didn't mean it. I was an idiot to believe him, I should have known he was lying.

Cyrus always said I shouldn't blame myself for not seeing what he would turn out to be, that it wasn't my fault, that if I wanted to get out then the gang would help me. But I couldn't leave. At first, I didn't leave because I still believed I loved him and that deep down he was a good man. Then I became pregnant for the first time. I certainly couldn't leave then, I couldn't take care of a child on my own.

I was pregnant for two months when I lost the baby. Timothy and I got into an argument. He was cheating on me with another girl. I was so heartbroken, I cried for hours. I'm not sure what caused the miscarriage that night, I think it may have been stress. All I remember is crying myself to sleep and the next morning I woke up in a pool of blood.

It seems things only got worse from there. The beatings got worse, the affairs became more frequent, I had three more miscarriages.. I tried to leave him one time, three years after we had been married. I was 22. The day I left, he found me and begged me to come back, promising me he would be better. I believed him and I went back. For a couple weeks, he was better. It was like it was when we first met. But then he went back to the way he had been. I never should have gone back to him.

Two years later, his parents died. I had just recently gotten pregnant once again, when we heard the news. They had left behind their other son, who was seven at the time. His name was Antonio, but I always called him Tony. As his only living relative, Timothy became his guardian. He was so horrible to the poor boy.. he would beat him, scream at him, lock him in the closet.. anything to hurt him. He deserved so much better..

The January after Tony started living with us, I had my first and only child. A little boy with black hair and blue eyes. He was so small, which wasn't surprising, he was two months early. Otherwise, he was very healthy. His father and I decided to name him Timothy Domenico Rogers the Third. He never wanted to be far from me, growing up. He hated to be near his father, any time Timothy would hold him as a baby, he would scream and cry.

I wish I could have protected him more, been a better mother to him. He is 19 now and I hate what he has become. He drinks all the time, he's cruel to everyone, he strings women along and uses them until he's bored.. he's so much like his father, it breaks my heart.

I blame myself, for the way my son ended up. If I had committed to leaving his father when my son was little, maybe he would have been better. But I had no way to provide for him. I had no life skills, no way to get work, and I couldn't go back to the gang, I didn't want my little boy to fall into that sort of life. And then there was little Tony. I couldn't take him with me, I wasn't his guardian and if I had left, Timothy would have surely killed him.

So, I went back to my husband. I bit my tongue and smiled through everything he put me through, for the sake of my son. My son, who was taught by his father that violence was okay, that it was okay to hurt others who were beneath you, that if a woman fought back against you, you could hit her, that it was okay to hurt your children because you had the power, not them, and children needed to learn their place. 

I love my son, I will always love my little boy, but I raised a demon and I will not lie and say I did not. 

Years went by after my son was born, nothing changed. I was beat when I stepped out of line, Tony was a punching bag that I could only help in secret, and my son grew more cruel everyday. Before I knew it, 14 years had passed since my son was born. It amazes me how much happened in those 14 years. Tim had gotten into much trouble over those years. Tony eventually moved away and was working. Timothy never would let him have a dime of their parent's money. Not that Tony ever asked for it. He always said he never wanted to be indebted to his brother, he never wanted him to have something he could constantly use to control him.

The biggest change was when a sharp-witted, blonde haired girl named Bella came along. She had run away from home when she was 10, and New York was where she ended up. I had recently had my fifth miscarriage when I met her in town. She was so full of life, so full of determination and willingness to fight against whatever got in her way. I took her home and begged Timothy to let her stay. And to my genuine shock, he let her stay. I was so happy he did, I felt like I was gaining another child.

But that was 6 years ago and much has changed. My son has his own home but visits often. Tony left and went to college, he now works as a lawyer, but his suffering did not end when he left. The poor boy was always being hurt. Bella is now 16 and for the past 4 years, she's been my husband's lover.

Tony told me. He told me how Bella let it slip that she was in love with Timothy. He told me how Timothy manipulated her and convinced her that he was in love with her as well, and that what he felt was more than sick, twisted lust.

For the first time, I was not upset over the affair. I was angry. I knew Timothy chased younger women, but he was hurting an innocent child and making her believe it was love. This was not love. I have never been sure of what romantic love feels like, but I know that this is not it. I know that what I have suffered since I was 19 is not love. I will not let Bella, who is so young and vulnerable, suffer the same fate I did. I have to get her out.

I will get her out. 

~~~

[Izabella was found dead, not far from the courthouse in Brooklyn, on April 29th, 1888. She was presumed to have died of a heart attack.]


	3. Interlude One

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Content Warnings:  
> Death  
> Mentioned Underage Rape/Noncon  
> Implied Manipulation

_Izabella quietly snuck into Bella's room, at exactly midnight. Bella was sitting at her desk, writing in a diary. She was often found writing or reading or sometimes she could be found playing the grand piano in the dance hall._

_Izabella went over to the young girl. "Hello, Bella."_

_Bella looked up, her leaf green eyes wide. "Hi, Mrs. Izabella, I didn't even hear you come in."_

_The older woman could only smile down at her, but it wasn't a happy smile. It was one filled with sadness. That was how she smiled, with sadness. There was never joy behind her eyes or smile, and Bella often wondered if she had ever been happy._

_"May I speak to you for a moment, bambolina?" She asked._

_Bella nodded and put her diary away. "Is everything alright, ma'am?"_

_Izabella didn't answer immediately. She seemed as though she was struggling with her words, and was desperately trying to find them. They seemed to be nowhere in sight, though._

_Bella began to worry, thinking she had done something to upset the older woman, so she tentatively asked, "Mrs. Izabella? Are you alright?"_

_"No," Izabella finally answered. "I'm feeling many things, and alright isn't one of them."_

_She took a deep breath, preparing to continue speaking. "Bella.. I know that you and Timothy are having... relations."_

_The young girl stared at her blankly. Izabella tried to read her expression, tried to decipher what she was thinking, but the answer never came to her. Bella's face was too emotionless, too unreadable._

_Finally, after what felt like an eternity of silence, Bella spoke. "I love him, Mrs. Izabella. I'm sorry, but I love him with my whole heart. And he loves me, he told me so!"_

_Izabella felt nothing but sorrow for the poor girl. "Bella, bambolina.. You are fifteen, you'll soon be sixteen. He's an old man. His feelings for you aren't love, he has you manipulated."_

_She didn't expect Bella to shove her. But that was exactly what she did. She stood up and shoved her away from the desk, now clearly furious. "You don't know anything about love! Tim never loved you and you're jealous because he loves me!"_

_Everything Bella said broke Izabella's heart. This wasn't like her, she had never behaved this way. What could Timothy have possibly said or done to cause her to act like this? "Bella, I am looking out for you. I have wasted my life in unending misery because I was too blind to see that my marriage was meaningless. You don't need to live that life when you can have any man you want, a man that could make you happy."_

_The young girl's eyes darkened with anger, and Izabella could see that she was hurt. She hated to see the girl hurt, but she knew she had to get Bella to come to reason. She walked back over to Bella only to be shoved again. "Don't come anywhere near me!"_

_"Alright, I won't. But Bella, you need to listen to me. I can arrange for you to leave here and you can have a good life away from here."_

_"No! I'm staying here, with Tim, and we're gonna be happy together!" She ran out of the room._

_Izabella watched her and thought maybe she should go after her, but she didn't. She left and went to her own room. Maybe she could talk to her again in the morning... ___

__~~~_ _

__Bella said that she ran to my grandpa, told him everything that happened. He told her he would talk to my grandma. And he did, the next day. He told her to leave._ _

__She left, and went back to the gang that raised her. According to Cyrus, she had left for the courthouse, to file for divorce. She died before she got there. Everyone thought it was a heart attack, but I don't think so. I think she died from a broken heart._ _

__My grandma Izabella lost everything in one day, and had to face the fact that everything she did in life to make things work had been for nothing. I fully believe the pain of it was too much for her and it killed her._ _


End file.
